Body spray brand Layer'r Shot, on Monday, apologised for its two controversial ad campaigns which last week triggered outrage for "promoting gang rape culture".
However, Layer'r Shot, owned by Gujarat-based Adjavis Venture, said the two advertisements were aired "only after due and mandatory approvals".
“... we never intended to hurt anyone's sentiments or feelings or outrage any women's modesty or promote any sort of culture, as wrongly perceived by some. However, we sincerely apologise for the advertisements that consequentially caused rage amongst individuals & several communities and beg their pardon.”, read the brand’s statement.
The statement comes two days after the Information & Broadcasting (I&B) ministry had on Saturday asked Twitter and YouTube to remove from their social media platforms the videos of advertisements of Layer'r Shot, as it triggered outrage for "promoting sexual violence against women".
What do the ads show and why are they problematic?
Two advertisements came into focus. The first shows a group of men and a woman, who is visibly uncomfortable, while a conversation ensues about how it is their turn to take the ‘shot’.
The second uses the same pattern of sexual innuendos, this time in a supermarket, which depicts four men discussing who will take the last ‘shot’ after spotting the last remaining bottle of Layer'r Shot. The focus during this dialogue, however, is on a lady rather than the body spray.
A large number of netizens then took to their social media handles to then express how the ads promote rape culture and sexual violence.
Reacting to the ads, National Convener Ruchira Chaturvedi expressed her chagrin via Twitter. "This is not only disgusting but also triggering for women. How is it okay for an Ad to make fun of fears of women?", read her tweet.
How has the government responded?
After the Delhi Commission for Women’s (DCW) appeal against the ad, the Center has ordered its suspension from all platforms.
In letters to Twitter and YouTube, the (I&B) ministry had said that the videos were "detrimental to the portrayal of women in the interest of decency and morality" and in violation of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code).
The controversial advertisements of body spray brand Layer'r Shot have been suspended by advertising authority ASCI, which also stated that the ad "was potentially in serious violation" of its code against offensive advertising.
Twitterati, however, remains unconvinced and unnerved by the statement and did not react positively expressing that the company denied its intentions and is compensating through a ‘fake apology’.
“Wrongly perceived? The people perceived it absolutely correctly”, tweeted a user.
Another user wrote: “t wasn't wrongly perceived. It was perceived exactly the way you meant it to be perceived. Don't try to pretend like you weren't demeaning women and implying sexual assault in your ads. It was your whole hook.”